KINGWOOD TWP. — Greg “The Hotdog Man” Crance wants township approval to convert an unofficial skateboard park into a staging and storage area for his company, Delaware River Tubing Inc.

He will seek a variance to allow a commercial enterprise in what is a residential zone at a Board of Adjustment meeting tonight, Wednesday, June 12, at 7:30 p.m. in the Municipal Building on Route 519 on the northern edge of Baptistown.

A sign left over from last summer directs customers to the Flemington Roller Rink property, where Greg Crance currently bases his operations.

The .76-acre lot in question is a mile south of Frenchtown, lying between Route 29 and the state-owned, riverside hiking and biking trail. It was occupied by Hunterdon Industrial Gases until 1996 when the place was destroyed by a gas explosion and fire. It was seized for taxes by the township, which sold it to Crance in 2010 for $81,500.

The concrete pads and foundations survived the explosion, and they are currently in use by local kids who have built skateboard ramps.

Crance and his family operate a business that loads customers and inflated tubes in retired school buses and takes them to access points along the Delaware River. They also operate “The Hotdog Man” hotdog stand among the islands between the shores of Kingwood Township and Tinicum Township, Pa. They keep their boats and fleet of buses in the parking lot of the nearby Frenchtown Roller Rink.

Diana Evans, who lives directly across Route 29 from the gas company’s ruins, is expected to be at the board meeting to speak in opposition to the application.

In May she wrote to the editor of the Democrat, “Route 12 has been designated Kingwood's commercial area. Route 29 (Daniel Bray Highway) has not. It is designated agriculture/residential. Any changes will decrease property values.”

She also wrote, “We have year round peace and tranquility on a quiet country road. We don’t want to see storage, fence, unhealthy bus exhaust, canoes, kayaks, oars, tubes, dumpsters, toilets, garbage, rats, seagulls or hundreds of cars and multiple thousands of people.”

Kingwood Township Municipal Building

According to Crance’s application for a variance, he “seeks to beautify what is at present an unsightly foundation remnant over a period of two years and restore a nonconforming lot to a useful purpose.” His application says he would do this by “removing overgrowth, erecting a privacy fence to shield the foundation from view and plant flora consistent with the natural environment. On the foundation remnant, the applicant will store tubes, kayaks and canoes for seasonal use in connection with the tubing operation. Buses will enter the property through improved driveways and drop off customers, who will access the river via state land.”